I love that in the Gospels, Jesus is all about the normal people who know their need for him. He hung out with fishermen — talk about salt-of-the-earth kind of people! He also spent time with the hated tax collectors and befriended prostitutes.

He didn’t hang out with the highly religious folks who thought they knew everything and did everything right.

For instance, there’s this great exchange between Jesus and a bunch of religious leaders one day who criticized him about this very thing:

Later when Jesus was eating supper at Matthew’s house with his close followers, a lot of disreputable characters came and joined them. When the Pharisees saw him keeping this kind of company, they had a fit, and lit into Jesus’ followers. “What kind of example is this from your Teacher, acting cozy with crooks and riffraff?”

Jesus, overhearing, shot back, “Who needs a doctor: the healthy or the sick? Go figure out what this Scripture means: ‘I’m after mercy, not religion.’ I’m here to invite outsiders, not coddle insiders.”